


Mistletoe

by forestofsecrets



Category: Uta no Prince-sama
Genre: Baking, Christmas Party, Comedy, Kissing, M/M, Mistletoe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-01
Updated: 2019-07-01
Packaged: 2020-06-02 11:28:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,412
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19440553
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/forestofsecrets/pseuds/forestofsecrets
Summary: A Christmas party has Natsuki volunteering to make cookies, which leads to Syo and Ai being in the kitchen to supervise.





	Mistletoe

**Author's Note:**

> I've always wanted to write a mistletoe story. I enjoyed writing this and may write more in the future.
> 
> The recipe is the one I use to make cookies from scratch.
> 
> Made on 12/16/2018.

It was that time of year again, when snow was blanketing the campus grounds and Christmas trees were popping up like daisies in spring. Twinkling lights were on every roof’s edge and wreaths were spun around every banister. There was a perpetually sweetish smell coming from the kitchen, due to Natsuki’s holiday baking. Luckily, both Syo and Ai were present to prevent any mishaps.

Natsuki was wearing his classic frilly pink apron, while Syo and Ai had plainer white aprons on. Thanks to Natsuki volunteering that he make cookies, the other two were drawn into making sure they were edible.

“The recipe only calls for three quarter cups of brown sugar.” Ai was reading directly from the recipe, printed out for convenience. He then looked up at the amount that Natsuki was trying to put in.  
“Adding anything more is uncalled for in this recipe.”

That didn’t deter the tall blond in the slightest. He was deadset on making these cookies with two cups of brown sugar. “I’ve always made it this way though… And they always turn out really nice!” His enthusiasm was unable to be curbed.

“The recipe also calls for normal sugar, right? Can’t we just put less of that in?” Despite Syo’s best efforts, he was unable to stop Natsuki from pouring his desired amount of brown sugar in. His arms just weren’t long enough to snatch the measuring cup away before its contents were dumped in the mixing bowl.

Ai went back to reading the next line of the recipe. He had made sure to take a seat across the counter from where Natsuki was working. He didn’t want to get drawn into any inevitable horseplay or splashed with any ingredients. Syo was elbow to elbow with Natsuki, keeping an extremely close eye on each ingredient that went into the mixing bowl.

The counter was already covered and they had barely gotten started. Sugars that didn’t quite make it into the bowl and small patches of flour dusted the counters. There was a dash of flour smudged on Syo’s cheek that never managed to get wiped off. Though, it could have also been the baking powder. The two looked the same.

Next up was an egg. Ai got to watch Natsuki flawlessly crack the egg into a bowl before putting that in the mixing bowl as well. The vanilla came after that, adding to the sweetness. The chocolate chips were the last thing to add.

“We can add as many of these as we want,” was Natsuki’s eager advice. He had already gotten ahold of the unopened bag of milk chocolate chips. However, Syo had the scissors to open the bag.

“Give me the bag, I’ll open it and measure them out.”

“Syo-chan! It will be alright so we can just pour the whole bag in!”

Ai propped his head up on his hand, leaning forward on the counter. The recipe only called for one cup of chocolate chips and judging by his measurements of the bag, it was quite a bit more than one cup. Syo was unwilling to hand over the scissors and was trying to keep them out of Natsuki’s long reach.

“Just give me the bag!”

“I need the scissors, Syo-chan!”

Natsuki tried to lunge to grab the scissors unsuccessfully. Syo was determined, it seemed, to make up for his earlier failure with the sugar. Ai was leaning back now in case those scissors came his way.

“I guess I’ll just open it this way!!”

Instead of attempting to get the scissors once more, Natsuki tried to open the bag neatly in a corner. What actually happened was him ripping the bag wide open, causing a number of chips to go flying. Syo let out a squawk as numerous chocolate chips went his way. Ai stiffened as a few even managed to make their way over to him, on the other side of the counter.

The look Natsuki had on his face afterwards was of cute confusion with the bag still in his hands. Well, to Ai, now there seemed to be just the right amount of chips in the bag. He let Natsuki know that he could toss those right in the mixing bowl, Syo’s grumbling aside.

Now that all the ingredients were in the bowl, all that was left to do was mix and bake. Simple, right? Not so simple. The trio quickly realized that they were out of parchment paper and therefore unable to bake their cookies.

“Natsuki, can you—“

Natsuki hopped right to attention, cutting Syo right off. “I’m on it!” The tall blond left the room without removing his apron. Ai was once again reminded that Natsuki was shameless. An eggcellent egg cracker, but shameless.

The room fell quiet for a few moments. Before any conversation could start, a loud ding filled the air, letting both of them know that the open was finished preheating. It made Syo start and Ai stare. Ai decided to drop it and suggested something else instead.

“Shall we start making the cookies?” The recipe said that the mix would bake four dozen cookies. If they put 12 cookies per tray to bake, they would need to repeat the action four times. The cookies needed 10 minutes to bake so that was a considerable amount of time. “They need to be the same size otherwise they won’t bake properly. That is what the recipe says.”

Syo took some dough and rolled it into a ball. Ai did the same, copying his size. Soon enough, a dozen identical little dough balls were on the counter. The dough was moist and sticky on his fingers and Ai found himself disliking the sensation. He had just finished wiping his fingers clean when Natsuki returned with parchment paper in hand and something green on his head.

“What is that,” less of a question, flatly phrased to express just how Ai felt about the very festive and very bouncy headband that Natsuki had picked up. It wasn’t as bad as the singing ugly Christmas sweater that Otoya was showing off earlier but it came close.

Natsuki brought his hand up to remove the headband. “This? Oh, Ren gave it to me! Do you want to wear it?” Without giving Ai time to respond, Natsuki fitted the headband onto Ai’s head. He giggled to himself. “You look so cute with it on!”

It jingled on Ai’s head. The festive, red balls with silver swirls on them were bouncing just in his peripheral vision, just enough to be a nuisance. There were small clumps of something green between the balls. Ai couldn’t see well enough to see what it was. He knew that Natsuki would keep bothering him about it so he may as well wear it. The sudden weight made his head sway slightly when he moved.

“Now that Natsuki’s back, we can continue baking.” Ai noted that Syo was giving him a strange look but he ignored it. He knew he looked silly but clearly that was just something people did in the holiday season. Ai made his way back to the oven, where Syo was. The latter was still staring at him so Ai made a point of mentioning it this time.

“What?” He was right in front of Syo now, looking down at him. The balls made the headband tilt forward due to weight distribution. The blond wasn’t meeting his eyes, instead looking at the headband. Perhaps saying that Syo was staring at the patches of green was more appropriate.

“Is that—“ 

Syo was interrupted by Natsuki’s loud gasp. “You’re under the mistletoe together!”

Mistletoe? Ah, so that was what the green patches were. Ai recalled that they have a particular function at Christmas time.

“Now I’m required to kiss you?” Ai tilted his head further than he would have liked to the side, making the headband sway. The balls clinked together and jingled. “I suppose since it's tradition, I have no choice.”

Ai leaned forward to press his lips against Syo’s cheek. The blond idol was practically frozen when Ai pulled away, one hand going up to steady his headband. A hush came over the kitchen until the oven dinged again. It was reminding the trio that it was ready anytime to bake the cookies. Ai was the one that moved first, with a bright pink Syo following him. Natsuki was already at the oven, ready to begin.

Ai hummed. Ah, so it was flour.

The party was in full swing now. Every member of STARISH and Quartet Night was present and festive in their own ways. Haruka had graced them all in a stunning Christmas outfit, a red and white dress with rosy red cheeks. Otoya had found Reiji a matching ugly Christmas sweater, which also sang a Christmas tune. Much to Tokiya’s dismay, the pair insisted on following him around, saying they got a third one for him to wear. Tokiya adamantly refused.

Camus and Cecil wore matching antler headbands, with both of them claiming that it was their own idea first. Ranmaru wore a red sweater and brought his bass to give the party a bit of music. That led to Otoya whining about not having his guitar on him to play along. He lent his voice to Ranmaru’s one man turned two men band nonetheless.

Ren had a red, light up nose on his face that he had taken from Reiji, who had been trying to persuade Camus to wear it without any luck. Masato had some aspects of a snowman outfit, including a top hat and a button down sweater. He had a constant red sheen on his face, mostly due to Ren, which made him look like a constantly blushing Frosty. Natsuki and Syo dressed as a pair of elves. They had it all; bells on their hats, long curled shoes, and the bright green outfits. Natsuki wouldn’t stop gushing over how adorable Syo was, much to Syo’s delight.

When Syo was able to break away from his twin elf, he joined Ai in front of the Christmas tree. Ai didn’t need to turn around to hear the small sounds of the bells coming up behind him. The smudge of flour was gone, most likely cleaned off when Syo got changed after baking.

“Hey.” Syo gave Ai a small greeting. Ai returned it with a nod. He couldn’t help but notice that the short blond stayed an arm’s length away. Was this in response to Ai’s earlier actions? “This tree is really something, huh?”

The tree was towering tall over both their heads. It was a full bodied evergreen, Shining truly spared no expense. Swaths of glittering golden garland wrapped the tree with big burgundy bows placed here and there throughout its branches. Silver tinsel hung from the tips, giving additional radiance. Multicoloured lights were shimmering among the pine needles. A large star was placed on top and a wide tree skirt completed the ensemble.

Ai reached out to touch an end of one of the branches, the needles bounced when his fingers trailed off the end. The tinsel on that particular branch glistened. “It is. All it’s missing are presents.” It didn’t take much imagination to picture a tiny mountain of finely wrapped presents in red and gold.

Syo’s hands were fidgeting with the fabric of his clothes. Ai found it curious, watching out of the corner of his eye. His analysis showed that Syo’s heart rate was increasing, as well as his breathing rate. Then, Syo stepped into his space.

“What was with that half-assed kiss earlier?” It was either the proximity or the meaning behind his words that made them come out as a whisper.

Ai huffed. “Natsuki was right there. What was I supposed to do?” He kept his voice low to avoid drawing any unnecessary attention to them. “You look cute.” Ai reached out to flick one of the bells on Syo’s hat.

That caused Syo to sputter, a very different reaction from earlier. Ai could have a mean streak about him, often teasing Syo until he was a mess. “I don’t know…” The blond trailed off, turning his head towards the tree and away from the others.

“Do you want a proper kiss?” Ai was tempted to lift Syo’s chin up to look him in the eye. The corners of Ai’s mouth were lifting in a small smile. It would be so easy to use the mistletoe as an excuse. 

Ai’s words caught Syo’s attention. All it took was Syo’s affirmation of “yes” to have Ai leaning down once more. Their lips met and parted amid a sharp whistle that likely came from Ren. That lead to Syo grabbing Ai’s face back for another kiss before showing Ren exactly how he felt about the whistle with a single finger.

There were nearly a dozen pairs of eyes on the plate of cookies on a table in the center of the room. Somehow, the cookies that Masato had made were mixed into the cookies that Natsuki, Syo, and Ai worked on. The two sets of cookies looked the exact same. Yet the taste differed.

Syo delicately picked a cookie up and examined it before biting into it. “How!?” He covered his mouth. How had Natsuki managed to inject their cookies with who knows what when him and Ai were in the kitchen the entire time? Cookies weren’t meant to be spicy!

Another hand dared to approach the plate of cookies. It was Cecil, who inherited the bright red nose that Ren had earlier. Now he looked like a proper Rudolph. He was squinting at the cookie he had picked up before nibbling. One look at this face told everyone what they wanted to know.

Tokiya, who had decided to shove that ugly Christmas sweater over his head, was next. He surprised the group by managing to pick a safe cookie, evident by the way he quickly finished it without any grimacing. His sweater continued to softly sing Jingle Bells while everyone waited for someone else to try to Russian Cookie Roulette.

An elbow was working its way into Ai’s side. “Take one.” Syo mumbled around his cookie. It would be a while before he could choke it all down.

A quick scan of the plate did not yield favorable results. Ai turned his head. “I refuse.”

Ai got Syo’s cookie shoved in his mouth while Syo grumbled about how couples shared each other’s pain.


End file.
